Happy New Year!

You know, if I posted more regularly, I wouldn't feel compelled to make MONSTER posts like this... well... New Year's Resolution: post more regularly.

I'll try to keep this as concise as possible. But here is a four month update on my knitting life (or at least what I remember of it).

Cowl for Mom 

(finished July 4, 2010 -- gifted December 25, 2010)

Waaaaay back in July, I finished a cowl for Mom for Christmas. Since she is one of my most reliable readers, I wasn't able to post about it, but since Christmas has passed *and* I remembered to give it to her, here are some pictures and some info about the project.

The pattern is Plucky Curacao Cowl by Thea Colman (click HERE to download the pattern for free from babycocktails.blogspot.com). I shortened it so it would only wrap once around and I also left off the smocking. I'm not sure if it is because I wasn't able to smock the ribs tight enough or if the yarn wasn't right for the project, but I was really unhappy with how the smocking looked on mine so I didn't do it. If you look at other people's projects or the one that Thea Colman did, the smocking looks lovely; mine just looks way better without. I used Plymouth Yarn Suri Merino Wool in an off-white. Very soft!

Mom with cowl and gloves

September Knit-a-Long Fingerless Gloves 

(finished October 8, 2010 -- gifted December 25, 2010)

I did finish those fancy travelling cable gloves for the September knit-a-long: just not in September. I was very close, but pesky things like coursework kept getting in the way.

I showed them to Mom when I finished them and she thought they were quite lovely. Quite magically, she got a pair just like them for Christmas... oh Santa and his elves!

Argyle Vest for Jack 

(started October 6, 2010 -- still in progress...)

This one didn't quite make the Christmas deadline. Not even close, in fact. I'm aiming for his birthday in early August now. I'm still working on the back and haven't even made it to the arm hole shaping yet, but I'm getting close now. I've done about 25cm (in twisted rib stitch... 169 stitches... on size 3 needles... no wonder it's taking me forever!) and the shaping starts in just 13 more centimeters!

I'm going to need to do some pretty serious blocking on the project. Unstretched and unblocked, the vest is 11" - 12" wide. Ari has assured me that I am knitting the correct gauge and that it should block just fine. After all this work, I certainly hope so! And if it doesn't fit him.. well.. we'll figure that out when we get there. But I always think stuff isn't going to fit and then it does. So I'll probably be okay.

Whitman College Craft Fair! (December 3, 2010)

Early in December, Whitman hosted their first annual craft fair. As any good knitting club leader would, I signed the club up for their very own table! The week before finals seems to have been a rough time to have a craft fair. Only Hadley (a knitting club member) and myself had anything knitting related to sell (Ari had some prints from an art class that she tried to sell), but since I was trying to de-stash a bit before the holidays, the table was pretty full.

Ari and I also tried to sell knitting lessons and a bunch of people stopped and said what a great idea the lessons were. They included a trip to a yarn shop with assistance picking out a pattern, needles, and appropriate yarn. Unfortunately, no one actually bought a lesson. We were hoping that more faculty would come through and want to buy a knitting lesson for their children, but almost no faculty even looked into the craft fair.

I knit some quick projects for the fair. I sold two headbands (should have made more! They were super popular and gone within the first five minutes), but nothing else moved. I think the fair might have been too far from Christmas for people to be really thinking about Christmas gifts. Most students seem to go Christmas shopping once they get home from break. I ended up donating the red and white striped scarf (see image above) to a man who works with youths whose lives have been affected by HIV. He was collecting scarves to give to the kids in his support group. So at least it went to a good cause!
Note: The three hats (blue beanie, blue cuffed hat, and red-white beanie) are still available if anyone is interested. Email me at knittinsmitten@gmail.com to inquire.

Fingerless Arctic Blast Gloves for Lauren M.

(started December 2010 -- finished December 24, 2010)

Modelling by Mom

One set of three fingerless gloves I hope to finish over winter break. My friends Lauren M., Lily, and Alyssa saw a pair of fingerless gloves (from earlier post HERE) and really liked them. They all asked for a pair and since I was going to be knitting stuff anyway...
The pattern I used for Lauren's gloves is called Arctic Blast by Star Athena (click HERE to get to Star Athena's blog and see her pattern). I used Rowan Cashsoft DK yarn in Opulence and they turned out quite lovely if I do say so myself. Mine didn't turn out nearly as lacy as the gloves that others made, but I like them all the same.

Fingerless Maloja Gloves for Lily

(started December 29, 2010 -- still in progress)

I'm trying a new technique with these gloves. I'm using my brand spankin' new Addi Naturas (soooo nice!!) and trying magic loop AND knitting two at once. It looks like I'm having a laddering problem so I might have to start over which would be a huge pain. Getting everything lined up and started is by far the most challenging part of magic loop. Once you get going, it's super easy.

Imagine these gloves...

in this color!

The pattern I'm using is Maloja Fingerless Mitts by Tracy Grzegorczyk (click HERE to buy the pattern). I'm using Sublime Yarns Cashmere Merino Silk DK in Black Cherry (purpley-plum.. very pretty).

Learn How to Knit Fair Isle Swirls Hat!

(started January 3, 2011 -- class on January 6, 2011)

I’ve been talking about learning stranded Fair Isle for a while now and since Serial Knitters in Kirkland is offering a class that works out with my schedule while I’m visiting my parents, I figured, why not?! So I’m signed up for the class, have bought the yarn, and have already done the ‘homework’. The first few rows are finished up to the first Latvian braid (the chevrony arrows near the rim of the hat).

The pattern is Swirls Hat by Carolyn Doe (click HERE to purchase). I'm using Cascade 220 superwash wool in charcoal grey, white, and light pink. The main color will be grey with white swirls and pink accents. Hopefully it will be cute... we'll see!

The class in on Thursday, January 6, 2010 from 6pm to 9pm. There isn't very much to take a picture of, but hopefully after class I'll have some color work done and will post about it then.

I’m using the magic loop method. I’m might have a slight laddering issue where I switched colors for the first time, but I think that it’ll be small enough that it will either be an easy fix or not noticeable.

Things I hope to learn:

- Stranded color work!

- Latvian braid trim

- Braided tassle

Spring Beret for Me!

(Planned)

I have this pretty light yellow yarn and I'm planning to knit myself a slouchy spring beret. The pattern I've picked out is called Pasha by Jane Richmond. I'm pretty excited to start it! I hope to get it done before April 2011. (Check out RAVELRY to get this pattern).

Big Tree Blanket

(will be in progress forever...)

No progress has been made past the first 6 or so rows. The blanket is currently about the size of my hand. We'll see how much work I get done on it before summer 2011...

**

That's all for now! Happy new year to everyone!

Quinn's Still Incomplete Birthday Beret

Today is Quinn's birthday (she just turned 20) and unfortunately her head is still bare. I'm 56% done (row completion, not stitch completion). I've made a ton of progress over the past week or so, but I wasn't able to get it done by today. I am about to start row 35 of 69, which sounds like I have an absolute ton left to do, but I'm past the widest part of the hat so the rows are getting shorter and shorter. Right now, my rows have 196 stitches, but next time I decrease, I decrease down to 168. Then 140. Then 126. Then 98! (70, 42, 28, and then finally 14). So it's going to start going really quickly very soon, I'm just not there yet.

On the plus side, it's starting to look hat-like. And if you sort of squish it down and spread the bottom part out it even looks like a beret sorta. I'm enthusiastic. I think it's going to work.

I told Quinn yesterday that her birthday present was still in the works and that she would get it sometime this week. She seemed a little disappointed that she wasn't getting her present on her birthday, but then I pointed out that it was like celebrating all week and she perked up.

I've been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer while knitting. I think it improves morale. I just finished up season 1 (I decided to start over since I don't remember where I was in the show anyway). Season 2 will have to wait though. Something about wanting to graduate on time tells me that I should do my anthropology reading tonight instead of Buffy season 2.